These plants should NOT be potted in bonsai pots yet. The pots you are referring to are not suitable as training pots, they are shaped like normal bonsai pots, not training pots... but they are plastic.

Oh dear, it appears I haven't done as thorough of research as I thought. Alright, so I guess I should ask what qualities I should look for in pre-bonsai and also what I should look for in training pots. Wow, I nearly didn't post at all and continued on with my purchase, but I glad I did now.

thebonsaiguy wrote: Oh dear, it appears I haven't done as thorough of research as I thought. Alright, so I guess I should ask what qualities I should look for in pre-bonsai

It totally depends:
- Do you have a garden and enough space to grow trees outside?
- How much are you willing to invest - in money, to buy a suitable tree, and time, to train it
- How much time are you willing to spend on learning the basics?
- How much interest in the hobby do you really have?

and also what I should look for in training pots

I don't think training pots are relevant at this time. Plastic, btw, can be fine. Depends...

This is what a white pine in a training pot looks like:

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See the difference?

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thebonsaiguy wrote: -I don't have a garden per-say, but I do have a place to grow the trees

Outdoors or indoors?

-Unfortunately at this time, I need to spend as little as possible. As for time to find a tree and train it, I have plenty of time

You could try and find good material at a bonsai nursery, or a common nursery - the first one will have better material, but it will be more expensive. Where are you located? if you're lucky, alternative is to get trees from nature, or even from someone's garden.

As much time as necessary I suppose

You will kill trees. That seems inevitable, and a sort of tuition fee. First and most important thing to learn is how to grow a tree - before you try to grow a bonsai.

As for pots, does that mean I should just use any old pot or is there a certain pot I should use to begin with?

You do not need a specific type of pot to begin with. Preferably it is large enough for the tree to grow, but shallow.
However, most pre-bonsai are grown in full ground.

Bonsai are not created by growing young trees into bonsai, but by reducing large trees.

Do understand that it will take years before you have anything worthwhile to work with.

Do stray away from malls, utility stores, roadside stalls and other places that sell mallsai or shops that sell bonsai-seed.

I am in mid-eastern Florida (There are no bonsai shops nearby; however, there is a nursery nearby)

I don't want to kill my trees, hopefully I can somehow avoid that (see side-note)

OK, but should I still plant it in bonsai soil?

Bonsai are not created by growing young trees into bonsai, but by reducing large trees.

I'm glad you clarified, I honestly though it was the former

Side-note: As far as killing the trees, I've had a Walmart Ficus "Bonsai" for maybe 6 months-1 year and it hasn't died as of now, so I suppose that's a good thing. I even saved the tree from dying from root rot when one of the very large above-ground roots began rotting.

thebonsaiguy wrote: Side-note: As far as killing the trees, I've had a Walmart Ficus "Bonsai" for maybe 6 months-1 year and it hasn't died as of now, so I suppose that's a good thing. I even saved the tree from dying from root rot when one of the very large above-ground roots began rotting.